Airdrop Beacons

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Airdrop Beacons are gear which provide activated abilities in missions and must be equipped to 'mechs in order to use them. A beacon is obtained in the spare parts crate at career start and more can be obtained as rewards for completing flareups or in stores with the Inner Sphere-Level Civilization or Manufacturing tags.

Beacons come in four varieties: Battle Armor, Mechs, Tanks, and Turrets, each of which permits the calling of one kind of unit. Each beacon has a "default" unit that it can always summon, regardless of any conditions. The beacon description will also tell you what the unit is (BA: Inner Sphere Standard; Tank: Vedette; Turret: Standard Laser; Mech: UrbanMech UM-R60). You can also purchase contracts from system and faction stores that permit the beacons to call in different units.

Using a beacon consumes that unit's entire action (including movement, you cannot do anything else on the same turn you use a beacon). Units called in by a beacon are AI controlled and are considered allied to the player (so you're not summoning a wild card, you're getting a guaranteed ally) however each beacon has limitations on its call down ability in order to prevent undue spamming: there are cooldowns, per-mission use limits, resolve costs, and c-bill costs to using the beacons. Each beacon has descriptive text that will indicate these costs (the cooldown is seen after using the ability).

Battle Armor Airdrop Beacon

This bulky and heavy communication equipment grants the carrying mech's pilot the ability to coordinate with the Argo and call in an airdropped squad of battle armor, either one of Yang's IS Standard squads or a squad provided by an ally faction. BA squads other than Yang's IS Standard can be called in after buying their contract from the relevant faction.

Manufacturer: Gravity Industries
Tonnage: 1
Critical Slots: 1
Install Location: Any
Value: 1,000,000
Gear ID: Gear_Airdrop_Beacon_BA

Resolve Cost: 15

C-Bill Cost: 10,000

Number of Uses Per Mission: 2

Airdrop Range: 250m

Found In: Spare Parts Crate and system stores in systems with the Inner Sphere-Level Civilization or Manufacturing tags


BattleMech Airdrop Beacon

This bulky and heavy communication equipment grants the carrying mech's pilot the ability to coordinate with the Argo and call in an airdropped BattleMech, either one of Yang's project Urbies or a mech provided by an ally faction. Mechs other than Yang's pet Urbie can be called in after buying their contract from the relevant faction.

Manufacturer: Gravity Industries
Tonnage: 3
Critical Slots: 3
Install Location: Any
Value: 1,000,000
Gear ID: Gear_Airdrop_Beacon_Mech

Resolve Cost: 50

C-Bill Cost: 100,000

Number of Uses Per Mission: 1

Airdrop Range: 250m

Found In: Spare Parts Crate and system stores in systems with the "Inner Sphere-Level Civilization" tag


Drone Airdrop Beacon

This bulky and heavy communication equipment grants the carrying mech's pilot the ability to coordinate with the Argo and call in an airdropped VTOL drone. This robotic drone can provide battlefield support functions such as sensor locking targets, TAGing and Narc-ing enemies, and provides an ECM field for coverage as necessary.

Manufacturer: Gravity Industries
Tonnage: 1
Critical Slots: 1
Install Location: Any
Value: 750,000
Gear ID: Gear_Airdrop_Beacon_Drone

Resolve Cost: 20

C-Bill Cost: 75,000

Number of Uses Per Mission: 2

Airdrop Range: 250m

Found In: Spare Parts Crate, Blackmarket stores, and system stores in systems with the "Inner Sphere-Level Civilization", "Manufacturing" and "Electronics" tags

Tank Airdrop Beacon

This bulky and heavy communication equipment grants the carrying mech's pilot the ability to coordinate with the Argo and call in an airdropped tank, either one of Yang's Vedettes or a tank provided by an ally faction. Tanks other than Yang's pet Vedette can be called in after buying their contract from the relevant faction.

Manufacturer: Gravity Industries
Tonnage: 2
Critical Slots: 2
Install Location: Any
Value: 1,000,000
Gear ID: Gear_Airdrop_Beacon_Tank

Resolve Cost: 35

C-Bill Cost: 50,000

Number of Uses Per Mission: 1

Airdrop Range: 250m

Found In: Spare Parts Crate and system stores in systems with the "Inner Sphere-Level Civilization" tag


Turret Airdrop Beacon

This bulky and heavy communication equipment grants the carrying mech's pilot the ability to coordinate with the Argo and call in an airdropped turret, either one of Yang's turrets or a turret provided by an ally faction. Turrets other than Yang's turret can be called in after buying their contract from the relevant faction.

Manufacturer: Gravity Industries
Tonnage: 1
Critical Slots: 1
Install Location: Any
Value: 1,000,000
Gear ID: Gear_Airdrop_Beacon_Turret

Resolve Cost: 15

C-Bill Cost: 10,000

Number of Uses Per Mission: 2

Airdrop Range: 250m

Found In: Spare Parts Crate and system stores in systems with the "Inner Sphere-Level Civilization" tag